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Frostpunk is a strategy and social management video game developed by the Polish studio “11 bit studios”, released in 2018 for PC and a year later for consoles. Set in a new global glaciation that caused the collapse of civilizations, the player takes on the role of leader of a group of refugees trying to survive in the last city on Earth, New London. The game’s premise transcends simple city-building: it is a social management simulation where every political decision has profound moral consequences.

The core of the experience lies in the Book of Laws, a system that allows the player to enact decrees regulating everything from working conditions and medical care to public order and the management of free time. The laws are divided into two main branches: Adaptation and Purpose; the latter is composed of Faith or Order, which are mutually exclusive and represent the path toward a fanatical theocracy or a dictatorial regime. Each decision affects two crucial indicators: the Hope and the Discontent of the population. No option is neutral, and the game does not offer an ending that eliminates the consequences of the actions taken.

The academic community has carefully analyzed this political dimension. A study by Carlos Moreno-Azqueta, a researcher at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spanish State), published in the journal Comunicación y Medios in 2024, concludes that Frostpunk works as a tool for political socialization that generates “authoritarian political learning” in players. The research, based on interviews and questionnaires, observes how initial expressions of affection toward virtual citizens mutate into a justification of authoritarian escalation derived from frustration and the infantilization of these citizens.

The question of ecofascism was addressed by researcher Ben Alfonsin in a master’s thesis at Texas Tech University, where he analyzes the “permanent temptation” that this ideology exerts in contexts of extreme climate crisis. According to Alfonsin, the game argues in favor of the need for careful preventive planning that avoids scenarios in which ecofascist policies seem attractive. The existence of the “Golden Path” achievement (Camiño Dourado), obtained without allowing any death or eviction and taking in all refugees, demonstrates that it is possible to navigate the crisis without succumbing to authoritarian impulses, although only around 1.4% of players achieved it.

The sequel, Frostpunk 2 (2024), expands the formula with greater political complexity. The game is set thirty years later and establishes a parliamentary democracy with a Council of representatives. The player can no longer legislate by decree; they must negotiate and make concessions to political factions to get their proposals approved. This change transforms the game from a survival strategy into a “grand strategy” in which political tension becomes the main engine of the experience.

The cultural reception of the game has transcended entertainment. The need to negotiate and vote on laws in the sequel generated diverse reactions depending on the players’ cultural context, which illustrates how Frostpunk has become a mirror of contemporary political tensions and a tool for reflecting on the purpose of democracy in times of crisis.

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